The Worst is Yet to Come
by calltheangels
Summary: Alex Rockwell is a solider who sacrifices her life in the hopes of getting the rest of her unit back to safety. After waking 165 years later, she has new 'biotic abilities' and a new purpose for living. Meanwhile, Commander Shepard struggles to unite the races of the galaxy and keep herself together as the fight against the Reapers rests on her shoulders.


**Howdy folks! This is the first thing I've written in a very, very long time, so apologies for any kinks you might find (feel free to point them out). I have a very vague idea of where this story is going, and I'm going to try updating once a week (no promises). Also, I'm slowly working on completing the other work I have up- Hopefully this story will help get my creative process flowing again. Anyway, thanks for reading. Review if you'd like- Actually, it would pretty much make my day. :) **

**Bioware owns all rights to the Mass Effect universe... I'm simply borrowing. **

**2021**

The faces of my fellow soldiers were solemn and grim; wearing full battle rattle, holding tight to their weapons, teeth clenched to hold off the nerves and anxiety they felt. We were low on supplies, communications cut off, nearly surrounded by the enemy, who had been previously firing on us- a brief reprieve from the inevitable. I took off my eye protection long enough to rub my eyes, and then they were back on my face. I felt the sand that was ground into my skin; the desert was hot, miserable. A sandstorm was brewing, whipping sand up. My ruck was heavy on my back, and my weapon was the only thing i could take comfort in.

"What's the plan, Sergeant?" I heard someone ask. I looked up and found Hudson, our sole medic and my friend since basic training, staring at our first in command, Staff Sergeant Reeves. Reeves was a good man with good intentions and a good soldier, but he was a shitty leader- essentially, a paper-pusher who got promoted because he was well liked with command and excelled in playing nice with everyone. Playing nice wouldn't keep your unit alive under fire.

"There is no plan." He said bluntly. I wasn't surprised, given our circumstances. Reeves was normally upbeat, optimistic. Hearing him state the obvious sent a chill of fear down my spine. The few remaining members of our convoy sounded off.

"What?"

"The fuck, Reeves?"

"You can't be serious-"

"The other guys are _dead_ because we didn't plan ahead-"

Reeves looked at them with sad, hopeless eyes. "There is no plan." he repeated. "We are cut off from friendly forces, and we have enough ammunition left to take out a few hostiles. We have to been realistic about our chances."

I found my voice then. "Sergeant Reeves."

"What is it, Rockwelll?"

"There's a storm about to roll in. The enemy is about two kilometers from our position; A small team of us could ambush them and provide cover fire while the remainder of you make a run for it. You still have the one vehicle that runs. That should get you back to base."

"You're a _female-_"

"So?"

"You're not supposed to be on the front lines-"

"And?"

"You're a communications specialist, not an infantryman-"

"_No one_ here is trained for specifically for the front lines, Sergeant. But we all went through basic training, we all know how to stay alive in combat- it doesn't matter if you're coms specialist, a mechanic, a medic or an engineer. We're all very capable of keeping our shit together."

He stared at me before shaking his head. "That's a suicide mission."

I felt the fear in my stomach turn to anger. "Obviously it's a fucking suicide mission. But I'd much rather a few of us make it home then none of us." I turned to the few remaining members of the platoon. "Is there anyone with me?"

Without hesitation, Hudson slipped off his medic bag and handed it to the guy standing next to him- who nearly dropped it, surprised by the weight of it- and walked over to me. "Anyone else?"

Silence greeted us. I sighed to myself. _They're scared, they're tired, and they want to go home to their wives, girlfriends, friends and family_. To a point, I understood, but it was still frustrating. I suddenly missed the guys from the infantry unit i was with on my last deployment. Their bravado was contagious. "Alright then. Get the hell out of here while you have the chance."

"Rockwell! What the hell am I supposed to tell command?" Reeves glared at me. It always came down to looking good with the higher ups.

"I'm sure you'll think of something. You always do."

It took them a few minutes to get what little gear and people there were left loaded up onto the vehicle. Hudson and I watched them drive off slowly, fading into the distance. "Wonder what command will think of this. Kind of goes against the whole, 'never leave a fallen comrade' bit in the soldier's creed." He squeezed my shoulder with a gloved hand. "You're crazy, you know that?"

I smiled a little, sadness finding it's way into my voice. "Yeah. So are you for going along with this."

"Some have to give all." He was suddenly very quiet. "We've been at war for twenty years now, and over what? Our own government can't give us a straight answer. it's bullshit." he let out a deep sigh. "But, it's like you said. At least they'll be able to see home again." His eyes were bright. "Want to know something before we do this?"

"Shoot."

He took a breath. "I've always thought of you as a good friend. But i wanted more than that, you know? I always thought you deserved better, and i thought maybe i could be that better something if you were willing to give it a shot. I always wanted to tell you but the timing was just...never right..' He actually chuckled a little. "I guess being stranded in the desert with terrorists just waiting to kill is is the perfect time."

"Well, Caleb, if by some weird twist of fate we actually get out of here and make it home... " My voice caught in my throat. It would figure _this_ would come out at the last possible moment. I'd always had feelings for him, but let them go unsaid in lieu of duty and our friendship...and the fact we were normally on opposite ends of country from each other. "I'd love to give it a try." I gave him the biggest smile i could manage with tears threatening to spill over- which was admittedly, quite an accomplishment on my part.

He looked uncertain, but then pulled off his helmet and eye protection. I followed his lead. He was gentle at first, and then the kiss turned desperate. We were about to walk right to our deaths, and this was the only comfort we had to offer the other.

After a moment of just holding onto the other, we broke apart. I wanted to crack a joke about the regs on fraternizing and the military code of justice, but i just couldn't bring myself to it. I put my gear back on, turned my weapon on full auto, and started walking.

It didn't take long to find them. Shouts in a foreign tongue greeted my ears, wind at my back pushing me forward, sand whipping through the air. That was our one advantage- the enemy had shit for visibility I felt Hudson next to me tense up. "Get ready." he said, pulling the pin of a grenade and throwing it left of our position, i assumed in the hopes of buying us a little time.

I dropped down into a prone position on top of a sand dune.I looked down the sights of my M-4, and felt my mouth fall open, allowing tiny grains of sand to enter my mouth. I was staring at a super weapon, hulking and glowing a bright vivid blue on top of a beat up armored truck. There was no time to think, or process what it was. All I knew was that our combat rifles were no match for whatever the fuck that was

"Hudson! Get to cover!" I screamed. His eyes grew wide, and then he dove into the sand next to me, pulling me underneath him.

"Close your eyes, Alex." I heard him say in my ear. Even though i did as he commanded, i still saw the bright blue blast of light and cold tendrils of death swallow us whole.

2237(?)

"Late last week, Alliance scientists discovered a significant element zero deposit on Earth, in the Middle East. Samples from the dig site have been sent to an Alliance research facility on Mars for further study. This could potentially shift humanity's political position in the galaxy if-"

I switched off the vid and went over the window, watching a boy play with a toy dreadnought outside. I smiled, and felt a slight twinge of envy. I wanted to go outside. i wanted to be a kid again, living on whichever ship my mother was serving on. I missed the majesty of my childhood, when the Alliance could do no wrong, and all i wanted to be was a simple soldier and a ship.

Instead, i was Commander Motherfucking Shepard, tasked with the duty of saving the entire galaxy from a threat no one but my old crew and an egomaniacal madman believed in. Reapers would be swooping down any day now to exterminate humanity and every other advanced race that was in existence. Asari, Turian, Krogan, Quarian, Batarian, Drell- maybe even the Volus, Elcor, and the Hanar. And the Geth. All life would be wiped out, and it would be due to the leaders of the galaxy ignoring the threat.

_I'm just one woman. I'm supposed to be capable of solving this problem? _

_Well, maybe i could, if the Alliance or the Council would back me. up. _"Relieved from duty," as Alliance brass put it. They took the Normandy, and grounded me until they could sort out my ties to Cerberus- not that i had kept any ties to them after our trip through the Omega 4 relay. It was miraculous enough that we had all made it out alive- injured, bruised up, and shaken, but alive nonetheless. The feeling of relief I had felt upon seeing my crew in one piece was exhilarating; proof i had done my job correctly. The only thing that made that moment better was a certain Turian's blue eyes locking with mine, _I told you so_ written across his face.

My heart twinged.I missed him.

There was a knocked at my door. I jumped at the sound, successfully coming to reality."Yes?"

A human soldier entered, saluting me as he did so. "Commander." he said.

"You're not supposed to call me that anymore, James." I looked up at him. The hispanic towered over me.

"Yeah, well, i'm not supposed to salute you either. We gotta go. The defense committee wants to see you."

"The committee? Sounds important."

"it must be if they want you."

I followed him out the door and down the hallway. Everyone was rushing around, some in armor, some with datapads and omni-tools lit up. "What's going on- Captain Anderson." We stopped in our tracks and saluted him as he turned around. His face had a few more wrinkles than when i last saw him, and coupled with his dress blues on, he looked slightly stoic. Anderson was one hell of a leader; his word was law as far as i was concerned.

"Vega. Shepard. Good to see you." He returned the salute, and then motioned for us to follow him. He was getting up there in years, but he was still spry. And quick. I had to double time to catch up to him. "Looking a little soft around the edges. How're you holding up?"

"It's not so bad, once you get used to the hot food bed and soft beds."

"We'll get it sorted out."

I jumped out of the path of an engineer who was in a clear rush and fixated on his omni-tool. "What's going on? Why's everyone in such a hurry?"

"Just got word. Admiral Hackett is mobilizing the fleets. Something big is heading our way."

I stopped dead. "The Reapers?"

"We don't know. Not for certain."

"What else could it be? It's the Reapers." I said firmly. "We're not ready, not by a longshot."

"Tell that to the committee." Anderson picked up the pace again. I rolled my eyes.

"Unless we plan on talking the Reapers to death, the committee is a waste of time." We kept walking at our frantic pace. The people around us now were all dress blues, all officers who worked for the committee. "I'm just a soldier. Not a politician."

"I don't need you to be either. Just do whatever the hell it takes to get their help in stopping the Reapers." We walked through another set of doors, the room bustling with people.

"Good luck in there, Shepard." I hadn't realized James was following us. "Thanks, Vega."

"Shepard?" came a familiar voice.

"Kaidan?" I turned and saw the biotic standing before me, clad in blue armor. I felt my stomach burn with a mix of anger and resentment- and the smallest spark of attraction and longing. He had been a lover once before... but past relationships would have to wait. I had a committee to deal with.

"How'd it go in there?"

"I can never tell. I'm just waiting for orders now." Anderson dismissed him with a curt nod, and we continued on into the next room.

The defense committee was comprised of so called experts on battlefield tactics, tech, and the like. None of them, as far as i knew, had actually been in a warzone or battle of any kind. They sure didn't have the medals on their dress blues to back up their positions.

"What's the situation?" i asked after they greeted Anderson, ignoring formality.

"We were hoping you could tell us."

"It's unlike anything we've ever seen. We lost contact with everything beyond the Sol relay, and whole colonies have gone dark."

"Whatever it is, it's incomprehensibly powerful."

I was quickly losing my patience. "You brought me here to confirm what you already know. The Reapers are here."

There was a ripple among the committee, fear shown plainly across their faces. "Then... how do we stop them?"

I wanted to laugh. I _really_ wanted to laugh. "Stop them? It's not about strategy or tactics. It's about survival now. They're more advanced, more intelligent than us. They do not fear us, and they'll never take pity us. if we want any chance of surviving this, we have to stand together."

One member of the committee stared at me. "That's it? _That's_ our plan?"

I was about the tell him that we could have had a better plan in motion if they had just_ listened_ to me in the very beginning, but was interrupted but an officer shouting, "We've lost contact with Luna Base!"

"The moon?" Anderson breathed next to me. "They couldn't be that close already."

"Sir, UK headquarters has a visual!" The screens behind her flickered to life. A soldier was screaming frantically into the camera lens when an explosion sent him flying, the signal cutting out. News vids popped up on the screen; everyone in the room gasped, or made some sort of noise. It was unsettling to see a Reaper hovering over London, but i wasn't shocked. I had known it was coming.

"What do we do?"

"The only thing we can." I answered. "We fight, or we die."

The room was silent. "We should get to the Normandy," said Anderson after what felt like an eternity. From outside came a rumbling noise. I held my breath, hoping against hope that i was wrong.

I wasn't. A fleet of Reapers descended into view, with guns literally blazing. The members of the committee seemed paralyzed. "Move!" I yelled. "GO GO GO!"

I started running as a red beam cut through the glass, sending everything within it's path flying. Another beam fired; i felt myself launched into the air, hitting the floor with a high velocity. I laid there for a moment, head throbbing. "Shepard! Shepard!"

Anderson came into sight. "Shepard! C'mon, get up." He pulled me to my feet, handing me a pistol. "Take that. We've got to get moving."

We made our way through the wreckage and came to stand where the window used to be. Aircars and shuttles zoomed around, the Reapers a hulking blight on the landscape. Fires were already raging, and there were screams of civilians in the distance. Anderson and i looked at each other with a knowing look, and dropped to the platform below us.

Husks crawled around, and one Reaper in particular kept firing beams in our direction. It didn't take long to run out ammo, and i found myself going toe-to-toe with husks. I didn't have biotic capabilities like Kaidan, and i wasn't trained in a specialty such as infiltration or engineering. I was a soldier, pure and simple. I scowled to myself; if i had known my future was going to be like this, i wouldn't have turned down training the Alliance offered me. Being skilled with rifle didn't seem like much good now, not when ammunition was going to become a precious commodity.

We made our way through to a building. Just as i was about to follow Anderson through the hallway, a noise from the ventilation shaft caught my attention. The same boy who had been playing outside stared back at me with terrified eyes. "Hey.. It's okay." I coaxed.

"Everyone's dying!" he whimpered. Rumbling from the Reapers outside shook the building.

"I need to get you someplace my hand-" I offered it out to him.

"You can't help me."

"Shepard!" Anderson yelled. I turned my head for just a moment; the boy was gone. Begrudgingly, i followed Anderson through the hallway.

"This is a goddamned mess! Every minute those machines are here, thousands of innocent people die!" raged Anderson. "I won't be responsible."

"No matter how hard you try, you can't save them all."

"Exactly."

We continued on through the hot debris. "They hit so fast-"

"We knew this was coming-"

"They cut right through our defenses! We need to go to the Citadel, talk to the council." Even with our current situation, i couldn't help but find the idea absurd. The Council? Help _us_. Hell had a better chance of freezing over.

"The Citadel? The fight's here."

"It'll be everywhere soon enough."

We continued outside, luckily coming across ammo. It was hard to believe mere minutes ago it was a normal day outside. Now the sounds of fighting cut through the air. Kaidan's voice came over the radio. "We made it to the Normandy but we're taking heavy fire- They're gonna take down that dreadnought! Evasive maneuvers!"

"They're in trouble." Anderson picked up the pace even more, only to stop in his tracks when the hull of the dreadnought came flying at us. It was a quick and sudden drop to the platform below us. My head ached even more now, along with a pain in my wrist from breaking my fall. I ignored it and kept moving.

"Friendlies!" We rushed over to the remains of downed ship, where a couple soldier were hunkered down. One of them looked seriously injured. I saw with a pang his leg was stuck under part of the fallen ship.

"Are you two alright?"

"Get down! They'll see you!"

I glanced over and groaned inwardly. I had seen these guys before. "Cannibals!" Anderson and I took cover, taking them out one by one. Once we had them neutralized, we went back to the men. They looked shaken. I couldn't blame them. "Our gunship was shot down. We barely made it,"

"Do you have a radio? We're trying to contact our ship, but communications are down."

The uninjured one grimaced. "There's one in the gunship, but it's crawling with those... things."

"Don't worry, we'll get you out of here. Shepard, we need that radio!"

I nodded and started moving towards the path. A few more husks and cannibals wandered into our path, but we found the radio we needed, and a couple discarded weapons. Anderson started to tinker with the radio. "Alenko, do you read?"

"Admiral, what's your location?"

"At a downed gunship by the harbor, we're setting up a distress beacon. Send support, we've got wounded down here."

The coms cut out suddenly. "Let's hope that beacon does it's job."

"And fast. We've got company."

I looked up and felt the blood drain from my face. Cannibals and husks were advancing on our position. I doubted we had that much ammo. _Fuck, there's so many of them..._

_Act like a soldier,Shepard! You've destroyed the Collector base. You defeated Saren and countless waves of geth and husks. This is nothing. _

We took cover again and started firing. They dropped, but not as quick as we needed them too. The ammo in my rifle was gone, and my pistol was quickly running out. And they just kept falling from the sky.

"I'm out of ammo!" I yelled.

The voice of the Normandy's pilot came through our omni-tools. "The cavalry has arrived!" I would have smiled if i hadn't been fighting a husk. Joker always knew how to make an entrance.

"About time!" Relief was apparent in Anderson's voice.

"Let's go!" We ran towards the ship. I literally jumped aboard, Kaidan clapping my shoulder. "Welcome back, Shepard."

"Thanks." I saw Anderson standing there. "Anderson! Come on!"

"I'm not going." he shouted. I felt my jaw drop. "What do you mean, you're not going?"

"You saw those men back there! There's a million more like them, and they need a leader!"

This was absurd. He had to come with.

"We can't win this fight, not without help." he continued. "We need every ship, every species we can get if we want a chance at stopping the Reapers! Convince the council to listen- _make _them listen! Now go! That's an order."

I threw my arms in the air. "I don't take orders from you, remember?"

He threw a set of dog tags at me. "Considered yourself reinstated, _Commander._"

There wasn't time to argue with his madness. I wouldn't win anyway. "I'll be back for you, and i will bring every fleet i can!" i swallowed the sudden lump in my throat. "Good luck."

"You too." I watched him run back the way we came, uncertain if i would see him alive again.

A shuttle on the ground was boarding civilians and wounded soldiers for boy that i had seen in the elevator shaft looked around uncertainly,and then crawled into the shuttle. He looked up at me as the doors were closing, eyes terrified orbs. The shuttle took off, and was airborne for only a few moments before a Reapers lethal beam cut it down. I felt sick as I watched it fall to the ground in flames.

And that was only the start of the horrors to come.


End file.
